Shahrastani, winner of English and Irish derbies in 1986, dead at 28

Shahrastani, winner of the 1986 Epsom and Irish Derbies, died Tuesday in England at age 28, the Racing Post has reported. He was euthanized because of the infirmities of old age.

Bred and raced by the Aga Khan, Shahrastani, a Nijinsky II horse, was pensioned earlier this year at Walton Fields Stud in Leicestershire, England, after a stallion career that also included stints in Japan and Ireland and at Three Chimneys in Kentucky.

Shahrastani went into the Epsom Derby off victories in the Group 3 Classic Trial and Group 2 Dante Stakes. At Epsom, he beat Dancing Brave before heading to Ireland to defeat Bonhomie in the Irish Derby. He closed out his seven-race career with fourth-place finishes in that year's King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.

At stud, he sired Spanish champion Dariyoun, American Grade 3 winners Marastani and Kazabaiyn, and such group winners as Rifapour, Cajarian, and other stakes-winners. His daughters include the dams of 2003 Irish Derby winner and champion Alamshar and Group 1 winner Caradak.